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The Best Asian Noodle Bowl

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I’m not sure if I convey to you how much I love this meal. It really is The Best Asian Noodle Bowl. It’s the kind of meal you want to plunge into face first. Its the mixture of salt and sweet and spice that just explodes in your mouth.

I came up with the recipe after making up an Asian sauce marinade and dreaming about how delicious it would taste over thick pasta with some seared meat and veggies. I love the sauce because it’s a combination of different Asian flavors – fish sauce (which is used in a lot of Vietnamese cooking), sambal oelek chili paste (which is used in a lot of Thai, Indonesian, and Cambodian cooking), and Chinese Five Spice (used in a lot of Chinese cooking).

You know I love my global meals! Honestly I cannot get enough of the flavors to be found in ethnic cooking! I will take all the flavor and spice I can get. (As a side note this meal is pretty mild for kids, but if you add more red pepper flakes to your dish you can spice it up without making the whole dish spicy 😉

I hope you understand how immediately you should make this. My tastebuds are still salivating thinking about all the flavor in this Asian Noodle Bowl.

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5 from 1 vote

The Best Asian Noodle Bowl

So dang delicious – this Asian Noodle Bowl is packed with fresh ingredients and so much flavor.
Author Shannon Lyon | Plum Street

Ingredients

Meat (Ground Turkey, Pork, Chicken, or Beef)

  • 1 lb. ground turkey (can also use ground pork, chicken, or beef)
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 2 tbsp. fresh grated ginger
  • 1 tsp. garlic salt
  • 2 tsp. garlic, minced
  • 1/4 tsp. Chinese five spice
  • 1/4 c. green onions, diced
  • 2 tbsp. rice vinegar

Sauce

  • 2 limes, juiced
  • 1/2 tsp. fish sauce
  • 1/2 c. soy sauce
  • 1/3 c. rice vinegar
  • 2/3 c. honey
  • 1 tbsp. chili paste (can sub sriracha or another hot sauce) (it's called sambal oelek – in the Asian aisle)
  • 1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
  • 1 tbsp. fresh ginger, grated
  • 2 tbsp. sesame seeds (plus more for topping)
  • 1 tbsp. cornstarch
  • 1 c. water

Noodle Mixture

  • 1 lb. egg noodles (16 oz.)
  • 2 tbsp. olive oil
  • 1/2 head green cabbage, chopped in about 1 inch shreds
  • 1/2 red onion, sliced thin
  • 2 green onions, diced (plus extra for topping)

Instructions

Meat (Ground Turkey, Pork, Chicken, or Beef)

  • Heat a large nonstick skillet to medium-high heat.
  • Add ground meat and cook until browned.
  • Add all the meat spices and the green onions and rice vinegar. Cook down 2 minutes until the spices are incorporated and fragrant. Remove from heat. Cover with lid and set aside.

Sauce

  • To make the sauce, whisk all the sauce ingredients together well, except for the water and cornstarch (you will add these later just before pouring into the meat and veggie mixture).

Pasta

  • Boil the egg noodles until just barely done. You don't want them to be mushy. (Be sure to check your package for cooking time – egg noodles can take slightly longer to cook than other pastas).
  • Strain the noodles once cooked, and lightly drizzle and toss with olive oil to keep them from sticking.

Bringing it all together

  • In a large wok or pot set at medium high heat, add 2 tbsp. of olive oil.
  • To the oil, add the sliced red onions and cook until softened. Then add the cabbage and cook for 2-3 minutes until softened and slightly wilted.
  • In a small empty bowl, add the cornstarch (1 tbsp.) and water (1 c.), and whisk until cornstarch is dissolved. Pour that mixture into the sauce and whisk well. Then pour the sauce into the wok with the veggies and let it come to a low bubble until it starts to thicken. Stir it as it thickens.
  • Once it has thickened slightly, add the cooked ground meat and toss to coat.
  • Then add the cooked pasta and toss with tongs to coat. Add in the final chopped green onions and toss it all together.
  • Serve warm, garnishing with sesame seeds, more green onions, and if desired more red pepper flakes. Enjoy!

Don’t be intimidated by the long list of ingredients. Basically you’re pan cooking ground meat with some spices. Then cooking some noodles and adding a sauce and veggies to it all. The complexity of the flavor comes from all those glorious Asian spices and flavors. All the fresh ginger and green onion really makes this dish so bright!

I hope you love this Asian Noodle Bowl like I do. It’s one of my favorite main dishes. Click here to see my other global meals! And tag me @plumstreetcollective with recipes you’re making.

Happy cooking!

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6 Comments

  1. Amy J Riley says:

    5 stars
    This dish is outstanding. Lives up to the write up. Dont skip anything!! Go get yourself a jar of sambal oelek and make this recipe right away. I wish my stomach was bigger. It’s hard to talk about it without profanity. Wowza!

  2. Hi, is Chinese five spice necessary? I don’t have that on hand. Is there a substitution for it?

    1. It really is important to the dish… If you don’t have any on hand you could try to make your own but to make it you will need a niece, cinnamon, star anise, cloves, and ginger!

  3. Hi! Do you think this would still be yummy without the meat? Thanks!

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